Bradenton man charged in death of Sarasota restaurant manager

SARASOTA, FL. - The Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office has arrested a Bradenton man for the death of popular restaurant manager Taian “Andrew” Tian.

Sarasota County detectives identified the three men who left the New Dynasty restaurant on July 14th without paying for their $35 meal.

Two of the men told detectives that that 20-year-old Juan De Dios Rodriguez of Bradenton threw the punch that knocked Tian to the ground and caused the serious head trauma that led to his death.

Rodriguez is also the man that witnesses described as having a rosary tattoo on his hand. The other two men are considered witnesses in the case.

Rodriguez is a documented gang member with a violent history that includes several weapons charges. He was taken into custody on Tuesday afternoon and charged with Manslaughter. He is being held in the Sarasota County Jail without bond.

“This crime is a senseless tragedy,” said Sheriff Tom Knight. “It began with a bad decision to commit a ‘dine and dash’ prank and led to a far worse choice that resulted in the death of a much loved man. We are committed to making sure that Rodriguez is held responsible for his decisions and actions.”

Tian's longtime girlfriend Marylou Anderson spoke at a press conference held Wednesday morning. She thanked law enforcement and said that Rodriguez took away so many of her tomorrows. "Some people call them soul mates. In China, they say that there is one heart blended together in the heavens and you can spend your whole life searching for that…and that there’s a red string that connects you and not everyone always finds that. You may have relationships and marry and do things, but you may never find that match in heaven, that red string, and Andrew was my red string and we knew it when we met."